Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Karen Forcht's Story of Success

With just four months before last year’s Barber Beast on the
Bay, Karen Forcht wanted to be out training for the event. Instead, she was in a hospital bed,
recovering from major surgery.

But that set back did not keep the 42-year-old Erie resident
from realizing her dream of beating the beast.
“To this day, I am unable to fully express the feeling that I had
crossing that finish line,” said Karen.

Karen describes herself as “not the typical 10-mile obstacle
course participant” and said that she had never run more than four miles at one
time. But she stared working out with
“Team Adrenaline,” an exercise group led by Erie chiropractor Dr. Steve
Krauza. Many of her fitness friends had
signed up for Krauza’s Krazies, Steve’s Beast on the Bay team, and Karen caught
their enthusiasm. The team loves
supporting events that help great causes, and Karen knew people who have
personally benefitted from services at the Barber National Institute. “That sealed my fate to try the craziest
thing I have ever done,” she said.

Karen planned to train hard through the spring and summer
leading up to the event. But then, she
became ill and underwent a hysterectomy at the end of April.

“That meant any training would have to be put on hold, which
really had me worried because I needed all the training time I could get!”

When Karen resumed her exercise program in June, she wasn’t
sure what to expect. “It turned out that
even though I was WAY behind everyone else, I was still able to complete the
workouts.”

Still, Karen wrestled with a voice in her head that told
there was no way she could finish. “I mentally committed to finishing half the
course, and then gracefully bowing out after our half-way party,” said
Karen.

Not wanting to disappoint her teammates, Karen told only a
few people about her plan. Even the
morning of the event, she thought that she would stop after five miles.

But then, as she began the course, Karen began to believe
that she really could finish. First, her
husband, Brian, surprised her at the start line and then cheered her along the
course. Then, team captain Steve Krauza
kept his word and never left her behind.
“He never once doubted that I would finish, and though we didn’t say much,
his presence was so motivating,” said Karen.

Karen was also encouraged by the number of people—including
complete strangers—who shared kind and positive words. “Never in my wildest dreams would I have
imaged that people would have been so encouraging,” she said.

Exhausted after the ten mile challenge, the only thing that
stood between Karen and the finish line was the steep hill on Peninsula Drive
leading into Waldameer Park. The entire
Krauza’s Krazies team was waiting, and several teammates came back down the
hill to help Karen and a few others get to the top. “If you’ve never had 60+ people cheering for
you, it is incredible,” said Karen.

But most of all, Karen realized that she was a lot tougher
than she thought she was. She said she
overcame worrying about what others may be thinking, and took the course at her
own pace. She felt an “accomplishment in
raising money and awareness for a community resource that has touched so many
lives, and in overcoming my self-doubt and displaying mental and physical
toughness that I never knew I had.”

As a daily reminder, Karen keeps the finisher’s medal on her
desk in the IT department at Erie Insurance.
And, she’s already registered for the 2015 event. “I just hope that I can inspire at least one
other person to do something great for their community and to do something for
themselves that they didn’t think was possible,” said Karen. “If I can do this, anyone can!”